Opposites Attract-AU
by Catpartierxx
Summary: May contain adult/nsfw stuff in future chapters, so I'm putting a warning. Poppy and Branch are new kids, starting a brand new at high school year. trouble starts brewing, and soon, its revealed that students are dying, one by one. No one knows the cause and It's up to Branch and Poppy to figure it out the mystery behind it. Oh, and did I mention they are also half-monster hybrids?
1. Origins part 1

_"They say opposites attract. You don't have to do this if you don't want to.."_

 _"Seriously? You idiot... All I know is that I want to be with you."_

Meet poppy King, the girl with the annoyingly bright pink hair, and wearing multicolored silly bands around her wrists. Now despite what you may think about poppy, the ever so sweet and kindly girl, she's actually a vampire. She honestly doesn't want to hurt anyone, and that's where her morals differ. See, different from other vampires, Poppy sees value in all life, and refuses to harm another. However, her life is about to change in an even bigger way.

Meet Branch Oak, the polar opposite of poppy. He's the gloomy kid wearing a simple hoodie and carrying a heavy backpack. He's quite the debby downer and he likes being left alone. He has never really been the social butterfly like poppy. It's hard not to like her. Branch is a werewolf, a rare and powerful creature. While vampires are numerous, werewolves are quite few in numbers. Branch turned because he is a seventh son, and has been dealing with his curse during the course of his whole life.

And this, my friends, is where our story begins.

Poppy skipped along the sidewalk leading to her new high school. She still felt a bit nervous, even though she has switched between many different schooling programs before. The girl made her way towards the building and gently pushed open the door, fumbling with a map in her hands, "Now where is the office..." She quietly asked herself.

Branch walked towards the school building, his hands in his pockets. He was a new student as well, and didn't know what to expect at this new place, but he certainly didn't expect it to be all cukcakes and rainbows, that's for sure.

As he walked through the doorway, he noticed a girl who he assumed to be a student here. Not wanting to have part in the whole "I'm new here" conversation at the moment, he walked past her without saying anything, looking around for where the office was.

Poppy glanced up from her paper for a moment to see a boy walking by. She didn't know what about him, but he felt kinda... Off? She didn't know how to explain it. He didn't smell like human at all. He actually kinda stank. 'Maybe he just stinks really bad...' She thought.

She scrunched up her nose in obvious disgust and went back to looking at the tiny map, realizing she'd been holding it upside down the whole time. She laughed a little nervously in embarrassment, even though no one was around her to care. She then located the office and started walking in the direction of it.

"Okay, Poppy, This is okay.. You've done this before, no need to be nervous. You can do it!" She mentally encouraged herself and kept walking.

Branch, having eventually located the office, waited at the desk for the woman behind it to look up from her computer, tapping his foot impatiently. Eventually he coughed loudly, causing her to look up and get his attention.

"And what can I help you with, young man?" She said, smiling sweetly. The kind elderly lady adjusted her glasses to get a better look at the youth.

"Well, I'm new here and I just need my-" Branch spoke, only to be cut off by someone else entering the office.

"Oh geez I hope I'm not late..." Poppy sprinted over to the desk. Papers flew by as she ran past. she was careful with her speed, as to not expose herself to the humans.

she practically cut in front of branch, not seeing him at all in her peripheral vision.

"Hello, can you point me to the guidance counselors office?" She asked the lady kindly.

"I'm new here, and she wanted me to come early today. Something about a 'new kid support group"

"Um, excuse me?" He tapped on her shoulder. "I happened to be here first," Branch said, irritated. He crossed his arms, tossing an angry look at the pink haired girl. Although he could've just listened to the front desk woman's answer and followed her directions, he was angry that someone had the nerve to cut In front of him, I mean, he was a powerful werewolf for Petes sake! He wasn't going to be pushed around by some stupid human girl.

Poppy turned her head around, looking over her shoulder. "Oh my gosh I am so sorry..." She said genuinely, turning around to face him. "I just kinda ran in and I was so focused on not being late that I didn't even notice you..." Branch rolled his eyes as She kept talking about how she was sorry.

Suddenly, a tall, lanky woman walked into the room. "Ah! Both of the new students are here! Perfect! Please follow me into my office." Poppy followed behind the lady, letting out a sigh of relief as she walked past branch, who still looked pretty ticked.

Branch trailed behind the tall woman, still angry but kind of regretting snapping at the other student. The lady led them to her office, gesturing for them to sit down in some of the chairs. "Here at Trolltown High, we organized this support group to welcome new students and make sure they'll be able to get around the school!" She said over enthusiastically. 'Sounds stupid.' Branch thought to himself. The other girl seemed to be enjoying it, though.

Poppy gasped with delight, smiling. She'd never done something like this before!  
"My name is Ms. Verionica von Chef, but please, call me Ms. Chef. It is my job here to make the students here feel welcome." She grinned. "That's why I'm setting up a buddy system of sorts, that way, You two will have a peer when you see each other in the halls! who knows? Maybe you'll even become friends-"

Poppy's smile grew wider. "Awesome!" She interrupted, waving her arms around wildly.

Branch sank into his seat, his arms crossed. The more that this Ms. Chef described it, the dumber it sounded. All he wanted was to just go to class, but nooo, he had to participate in this stupid program and buddy up with someone he didn't even know! "So, can I go to class now, or what?" He said, rudely.

"Have some patience, kid." She spat in a flat tone, making branch uneasy. Her change of tone went on and off as fast as a light switch. "Why don't you spend the day getting familiar with your surroundings and introducing yourselves?" She said between gritted teeth. Poppy didn't seem to notice the change in her voice.

Poppy quickly shot her hand up, flailing it around. "Ooh, ooh, me first!" She said with enthusiasm. "I'm Poppy!" She introduced, holding out a hand.

Branch held back the urge to roll his eyes. "I'm Branch," he said, his voice lacking the enthusiasm that Poppy's had. At least she seemed nice. It was certainly better than being partnered with some random jerk. He ignored her hand.

So, she took it by force. Poppy reached out and shook his hands. For a girl, she had a surprisingly strong grip.

"Nice to meet you Branch!" She said, still with a genuine smile. It was pretty clear that she wasn't faking the introduction or anything. She was determined to make friends!

Chef smiled a little, noticing how well the two seemed to get along.

Branch reluctantly shook her hand back, mumbling a "Nice to meet you too, I guess..." His hand kind of hurt after the exchange, because man, her grip was strong. "Uh, where should we go first?" He asked.

Poppy shrugged. "I don't know. I mean I guess we should look around and find where our classes are." She pulled out a small slip of paper containing the room numbers of the classes she had on campus.

Branch took out the sheet that his classes were written on and looked at it, comparing his to Poppy's. Apparently they had a couple classes together, including their first period class. "According to this paper, my first period class is in room... 235. That's on..." Branch checked the map. "The other side of campus." This was going to be a long day.

"Hey, me too!" She squealed. This day was gonna fly by fast! Poppy was a bit excited to find out she was in a couple of classes with him. Ms. Chef was right! It did feel nice to have a peer beside her. She wondered if she'd planned this on purpose somehow.

Poppy started to hum a little, sneaking in the occasional word. She couldn't wait to begin her music and acting courses. Those were always fun. She loved theater! She noticed that branch was also in her theater class.

'Hm.. Wonder if he likes singing and dancing as much as I do?' She thought to herself.

Branch walked by Poppy, taking notice of her humming. It actually sounded kind of nice. He also noticed they had the same theater class together. Maybe he'd be able to tolerate her after all.

The two adolescents entered the theater quietly, as not to disturb the class. It seemed like a play was already in session. The two found seats next to each other and began to tune into the play.

The two had picked up booklets on their way in, reading and filling themselves in with what wa happening.

In this play, there was a hunter, who was also a vampire, killing his own kind for the hand of a beautiful human maiden. A forbidden love story sort of thing.

The scene of a woman fleeing from a vampire was actually pretty convincing, decided poppy. Suddenly, the hunter swooped in to rescue the maiden.

She rolled her eyes. What was it with plays and saving maidens all the time?

Branch seemed just as emotionally involved in the play, too, since he looked like he was about to cry.

Poppy watched intently as the scene ended with the vampire dying and the hunter and his new bride kissing. She felt a bit at edge since the other vampire ended up dying, but it was only acting.

She hoped one day she might experience her own relationship such as that between the maiden and the hunter. It seemed really romantic.

She looked over at Branch, who looked like he was about to cry.

"Whoa, whoa, are you okay, mate?" A new voice seemed to catch both of their attentions. Poppy instantly felt shivers run down her spine. The good kind. Like, butterflies in your tummy sort of feeling. A boy had silently crept up next to Branch, seemingly wondering why he was so emotional.

Branch nearly fell out of his seat in surprise. He'd been so engrossed in the play he hadn't even noticed that someone had appeared beside him. He flushed in embarrassment, realizing he'd been crying.

"I'm fine ok? I had something in my eye." He said, now irritated. He turned and wiped his eyes a little. "See? I got it out now."

The boy didn't seem convinced. "It's okay to be emotional, mate. This play is supposedly one of the most popular and moving plays surfacing around right now."

Poppy seemed a bit interested in their conversation and watched them from a distance.

Branch completely ignored the emotional part of what the stranger said, not wanting to talk about it any further. He was interested in the facts about the play, though. "I can see why it's so popular," He said, "Is it based off of a movie or something?"

"Haha! actually it's based off of an old book. They then made the book into a movie. The script for the play is based off the movie. They almost rewrote the whole script because of this one scene where-"

The boy got cut off by one of the other actors. "Hey Creek, whatcha doin'? Rubbing off all your nerd culture on this poor soul?" The tall kid from earlier had started giving creek a noogie.  
"Nerd culture? How dare you! The play is an excellent piece of literature, Cooper!" He defended.

Poppy couldn't help but giggle at the scene.

"You're just butthurt cus they casted me as a major role and you got cast as the guy that dies within 5 minutes."

Creek gave him an angry, yet amused glare. "Watch your tongue, Cooper. I'm the back-up if something were to happen to you before performance."

Branch listened with interest, and finally asked what was on his mind since the play started. "So, when's the next play? Like, the auditions?" Maybe if it sounded like a good play, he would audition. That is, if he could muster up the courage to.

"Actually, the auditions are open right now!" A new set of voices broke in. Two people joined in on the conversation. Two twins wearing similar outfits. One had a blue dress and the other wore a pink one.

"Cooper, Creek, Suki and GD were already casted." Said satin, the girl in the pink dress. "Yeah they're kinda like the favorites of the class, so naturally they got first pick." Chenille said, the girl in the blue dress.

"We sorta just-" Satin began.

"create the costumes!" Chenille finished.

"Some roles are still open. And the backups are too. They might replace the roles if they find someone better, though." Another voice cut in. A small girl with a burly voice wearing a small blue dress.

"Hey Smidge! Wait up!" Guy diamond chased behind her, wearing a jacket made of sequins.

Poppy looked at all of them. They totally looked like a friend group together. She wondered if they'd ever want to hang out with her... They seemed kinda cool..

So he could still audition for a play if he wanted. That might actually be fun. Branch realized they'd been spending a lot of time in the theatre room, and if they stayed much longer they wouldn't have as much time to find and check out their other classes. "We should probably go," He said to Poppy.

Poppy almost didn't hear him. She was staring so intently at Creek. He was so... Beautiful... Seriously. How did HE get stuck with a minor role? "Y-yeah, in a sec..." She said, walking towards the friend group.

"Wow guys. That performance was just... wow!" She gushed. The kids were all smiling and blushing at her compliments. "I think I'm going to look forward to being in theater with you!" She said.

She then proceeded to gush even more about how she loved the performance. Creek and the others thanked her, and even invited her to have lunch with them later.

She then returned to branch and the two went on to walk to their other classes. "I'm definitely looking forward to this class." She confirmed.

Branch walked down the hallway by Poppy, listening as she chatted about theatre. "It does look pretty great," he said, agreeing.

They found their other classrooms, it turned out they had a lot of classes in common. They also passed by other classrooms that were hosting a lot of... 'unique' classes that Branch had never even heard of. 'What's next,' he thought, 'a class for gathering sticks?' Soon enough it was time for lunch.

Poppy was more than happy to oblige the invitation that she'd gotten from the other kids. She dragged branch along with her and after getting their food, she sat them at the table of the kids. Other people from the tables looked surprised, almost jealous. Little did either of them know, but they were sitting at the 'cool kid table'.

Branch sat at his new lunch table, silently eating his lunch. A turkey sandwich, which is truly fine dining. He occasionally saw people glancing at their table, and resisted the urge to send them dirty looks. Even if he wasn't talking much, sitting at a table with a group was actually pretty nice. He didn't have this at his old school.

Poppy kept trying to get branch to join in the conversation. It didn't seem like he was talking much and she hoped he would start talking more. However, he was warming up to her a bit, and for that she was excited!

Suddenly her senses perked up. She was craving. Someone had cut them self in the cafeteria by accident. She spotted it 20 feet away. She could smell it from a table away. She visibly began to tremble, trying to keep her urges hidden. She suddenly sprang up, mumbling something about the bathroom before she broke out into a sprint. She had to get out of there...

Branch watched as Poppy jumped up and dashed away, saying something the bathroom. He wondered what was up with her. Probably girl stuff or something. He wasn't going to ask when she got back because who knows what kind of answer that he'd get. He just went back to eating his sandwich.

Poppy rushed inside of the bathroom, only see that there were girls already inside. She ran right out again and then proceeded to find another place she could hide until this frenzy stopped. She eventually found a janitor closet and she shut herself inside. She wasn't about to go savage on a bunch of humans. Who knows what would happen then? She couldn't mess this up like at some of her other schools... Her eyes flashed red and she could feel tears run down her face as she gagged on her own breath. She was honestly really scared...

Meanwhile, the other kids wondered why poppy had run off in such of a hurry. "Hey branch, maybe you should go check on your girlfriend." Said Suki, smirking. Some of the other kids snickered.

Branch looked up from his sandwich and actually choked on it in surprise, causing one of the others to whack him on the back. He coughed out the sandwich part and spluttered, "What? She's not my girlfriend!" He said, feeling his face turn hot. "Besides, I just met her today. I hardly even know her!"

Some of the kids muttered things like, "Sure, sure." However, creek took this seriously and almost perked up at the news.

Branch looked back down at his food, trying to ignore his red face and the giggling of the girls at the table. Eventually he couldn't bear it and got up, saying "You know what? I WILL check on Poppy! But not because I like her!" He announced to the table.

He walked out of the cafeteria, looking for the girls bathroom. When he found it, he waited for someone to come out and asked if anyone else was in there. The girl gave him a weird look and said no. He looked around the hallways and heard noises coming from the janitors closet. It sounded like someone was... crying? "Uh, you ok in there?" He said awkwardly.

Poppy didn't respond. Instead, she found herself violently hissing. "GO AWAY!" She yelled, instantly covering her mouth. "Leave me alone..." she said, more meekly. She was scared. She especially didn't want someone seeing her cry. Or with her two fangs poking out either. She couldn't let anyone know her secret.

Branch hesitated, then walked away. If Poppy needed some time alone, then she can have some time alone. He knew that better than anyone else. He'd see her in one of his next classes anyways, so maybe then he could ask what was up.

Poppy desperately needed her alone time. After about ten minutes, she decided it was a about time to come out. She made her way out of the closet and into the girls bathroom where she quickly fixed her makeup. She looked in the mirror, and at her reflection. How much longer could she bear life like this?

She took in a deep breath and made her way over to the class again. That was a close one...

WELL. That was a wild ride lol.

Hey everyone! Partier here, back with a brand new story! This chapter was actually a slight collaboration between me and another friend, however the rest of the story will be written by me.

I have so many cool ideas for this story and I REALLY hope to finish it. (lol because I never finish anything :P)

Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Also this story is posted on Wattpad! check it out on my profile here: user/Bluethenerd


	2. Origins part 2

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."

As soon as poppy got into the class, she sat down into her seat. She felt several pairs of eyes on the back of her head. She suddenly felt a bit self-conscious... Poppy stared down at the desk, not paying attention as the teacher called her name during roll call. She didn't care. She just wanted to get out of the school as soon as possible.

Poppy was a mess when it came to blood. She couldn't stand the stuff and tried to stay away from it as much as possible. However, vampires need blood in their diet to flourish. It is vital to survival. She put off eating it as much as she could, however, even the tiniest waft of the scent could send her in a frenzy and she'd have to leave as soon as possible.

She didn't want a repeat of what happened at her last school.

She quietly mumbled her name, the teacher barely hearing her as she checked her name off. The teacher looked a bit annoyed when one of the students weren't in their seats. Other students turned to look in the empty chair. The teacher muttered something then walked in front of her desk, beginning the lesson.

Branch, being quite the observant fellow, noticed Poppy's ear twitching and toe tapping throughout class. Normal habits, but she was obviously anxious. He wondered why.

'Maybe I'll ask her after class...' He thought. 'I mean, not that I care or anything,' he countered. 'but I told her new friends I'd ask what was up.'

He went back to looking at his text book, apparently in this history class, they started out the unit by learning about the Salem witch trials, and how the people of the church accused others of being monsters.

He grimaced. Those people were innocent! Although real witches existed, it made his blood boil because the only proof that they had were complete lies.

Extra text to the side had a description of werewolves and how some power hungry people tried to use stupid tactics to turn themselves. Some were actually legit, but others were actually fake.

Branch rolled his eyes and kept reading. Another section off to the side described vampires. however, he didn't get a chance to read it.

The lights in the room began to flicker. The students looked confused and a bit scared. Probably just from learning about the scary stuff in the text. One kid even screamed.

Suddenly, the door to the classroom opened. A short, chubby, bald man with a thick beard was standing in the frame of the doors. The man walked inside, looking a bit timid and scared. He called the teacher aside and asked her to come in the halls so he could speak with her.

This was mostly likely because they didn't want the students to overhear their conversation. This caught the young werewolf's attention. Branch perked up in his seat.

Branch had excellent hearing; one perk of being a werewolf was able to hear whole conversations without someone even knowing. He silently began listening, holding up his textbook to make it look like he wasn't eavesdropping as his ear twitched slightly in the direction of the door.

"...W-we didn't want to cause panic in the building," The man began. "B-but we need you to m-make sure that the students stay in the room while we sort this issue out. T-t-there was a d-d-d-death in the building... It's p-possible that it was some sort of animal, j-judging by the evidence." The man was stuttering a lot.

The teacher screamed when she saw the photograph.

The student's lifeless body was lying dead on the cafeteria floor, her chest ripped and opened up with the organs strung across the floor.

It was the student in her class that was marked tardy.

Some of the female students began to freak out once to teacher screamed. Branch had to cover his ears so that he didn't go deaf over the noise of screeching girls.

Poppy was suddenly a bit nervous. What had caused their teacher to scream? One thing she was sure of was that this was not a regular situation.

Branch was dumbstruck. ' _A death in the school? An animal? Could there be another werewolf in disguise that was being careless?_ 'Questions flooded his brain.

The pink haired girl looked behind her desk at Branch with a concerned look in her eyes.

"Branch are you okay?" She asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost..." She commented.

Branch gulped. How do you explain you've just found out about a MURDER in your very school?

"Huh? Oh, I'm okay. Just a bit shaken up by all the girls yelling..." He lied.

Poppy believed him easily. "It's okay." She said. "I'm sure that it's just a false alarm. We're all probably freaking out over nothing." Poppy was too naive for her own good.

The teacher burst through the door a few minutes later, her dress covered in splats of dark red. "Class, we're not going to follow a safety procedure..." She began to panic a little. "leave the building anyway you can... through the windows, out the doors. I want you to leave the school as fast as possible. RUN, RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" She said, making motions with her hands.

Poppy and Branch exchanged scared expressions. This obviously wasn't normal if they weren't following a professional procedure.

Suddenly, a creature bust through the door. A creature that looked like a large, furry, giant bat. With extra long FANGS. "Vampires..." Poppy and Branch both thought.

This creature was in its true, ugly form, hissing, causing all of the students to scream and run, some of them being grabbed when the bat swooped down to capture them.

They didn't have time to think. Branch instinctively grabbed one of the desks and launched it at the bat, who dropped one of the students as it fell to the ground. The wreckage of the desk broke apart and Poppy reached out to grab one of the chair legs.

She screamed a war cry and tried hitting the bat with the piece of wood, tackling it to the ground. Soon, more bats swarmed in towards the room. most of the students had already escaped the room, leaving Branch and Poppy by themselves.

"Poppy, leave the room! There's too many!" Branch cried with a frustrated look. He didn't want to see his er.. What did he call her again? He didn't want to see... Poppy. Get eaten. After all, she was only a human. She wouldn't stand a chance against those vampire bats.

Plus, if he was to kill those things, he'd have to turn and he certainly didn't trust her to see him transform. She just wouldn't understand.

"No, you leave!" She said, swinging again at one of the giant bats. She wasn't about to let her new human friend get eaten by bats.

If she was going to get rid of the bats, she'd have to kill them. (Something she wasn't looking forward to...) , and she knew Branch wouldn't understand the fact that she was a vampire.

Branch groaned. Neither of them would escape if they kept bickering about who should leave. Drastic times calls for drastic measures.

Branch dropped the desk and scooped Poppy up in his arms just before a bat dived for her. Poppy protested almost immediately. "HEY!" She cried.

Branch held her bridal style and the two jumped out of the already broken window, landing safely in the grass as Branch did a duck and roll. He safely set her down on the ground and he looked back out of where they jumped. Bats were sitting by the brink of the windows.

"Of course!" Poppy exclaimed. "Vampires can't come out during the day!" She snapped her fingers.

Vampires in their true forms couldn't come out during the day, as the sunlight could burn and turn them to dust. However, in their human forms, they can move around the in the day freely.

Call it adaptation.

Branch looked as one of the stupid bats tried to fly out, only to turn into dust in the bright sunny day. Branch almost laughed. 'How stupid...' He thought. 'These guys must be minions of a higher class vampire if they are so incompetent...' He looked over at Poppy who was watching the vampires with a look of pure sadness.

"So uh... Wow... That was-" He began.

"Yeah..." She finished. "Probably not good that our school is now flooded with the living undead..." She joked halfheartedly, cracking a slight smile.

"Well uh, no duh..." He said sarcastically. He grabbed her wrist. "C'mon. We need to find somewhere safe." He started leading her in the direction of 'home.'

Poppy yanked her wrist back. "Hey wait, I should at least let my dad know what's going on..." She said, pulling out her phone.

"Okay fine, but please hurry... The police might show up soon and I REALLY don't want to be here when that happens..." He said.

'They might try to interview us...' he thought.

"Okay, done!" She exclaimed, sending the text. He leaned over her shoulder. "Did you really have to use those stupid emoji things?" He asked. Poppy turned her head and stuck out her tongue. "I happen to think that those things are very adorable!"

Branch rolled his eyes. "And I happen to think that I don't care..." He deadpanned.

He turned his head one last time, looking at the bats. "Seriously, we should hurry though..." He said, walking ahead.

"Hey wait!" Poppy called, walking after him.

 ***Meanwhile***

In the cafeteria, a tall figure loomed over the body of the girl with her organs strung all of the place. They had started to attract flies and the whole school left before they had a chance to clean up the body. The figure smiled wickedly, yellow teeth stretching across purple lips. The figure held a book in their arms, flipping pages until they got to the right one.

A resurrection spell.

"Yes...! Arise, Smidge. Go forth and work under the will of the dark lord. Your spirit will never die, just as your body..."

The body lifted in the air, the eyes opening wide open with white pouring out. No pupils visible. the organs spilling out of her chest began to float, almost tentacle-like. It came right out of her chest. The short, burly girl in the blue dress was no more. Only a lifeless gaze embodied her emotions. Vast nothing. Her body was not in her control anymore.

She stood, wobbling slightly like a puppet. The figure smiled. "Good... Now seek out the rest of your siblings in brotherhood... They await you..." The figure instructed, pointing a sharp finger.

The lifeless body carried out the order, walking in the direction pointed.

"A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time."


	3. Apologies

A secret- something that is kept or meant to be unknown or unseen by others.

Branch and Poppy had made their way through the neighborhood, which was still a bit unfamiliar to both of them since they were both new. Branch guided her through the streets which eventually led to his home. Good thing too, as the sun was almost finished setting.

Poppy had insisted on holding his hand the whole time and strangely enough, he didn't refuse. Probably because he was way too tired to argue. he scoffed and held out his arm to her.

The two silently walked along the street, not saying much. There wasn't much either of them could say anyway. Branch tried to think of possible reason why the vampires had attacked the school, and in broad daylight too... It was strange to say the least. He couldn't think of anything...

Branch was so deep in thought that he didn't notice when Poppy moved her hand up to his bicep. Her fingertips brushed over his arm, and he was surprisingly muscular. She grabbed his arm a little, squeezing it so that she'd feel better.

She was honestly really scared. Poppy wondered why those vampires had attacked the school. She should've been ready for anything. She should've been ready to protect her friend! Except, she wasn't. Branch had to rescue the both of them and jump out the window all because she couldn't think for herself.

She frowned and kept staring at the ground as they walked. Her eyes burned as they were on the brink of tears.

Poppy looked up at his face. He was frowning to himself, concentrating. She looked over his features. His hair was short and a bit curly. He had long bangs that fell over his eyes. She couldn't make out the color of his eyes beneath the hair. She almost wanted to reach up and push the hair out of his eyes so that she could see them clearly.

Eventually, Branch stopped at a house near the end of the road, pulling out his keys from the pocket of his hoodie. Poppy let go of his arm and let him open up the door to the house.

The door swung open to reveal the household, which you could barely see without all the lights on.

Poppy hung around the outside of the door, remembering that a vampire needed to be invited inside of a household or else they couldn't enter.

Branch had set down his backpack and begun digging around for a flashlight. He noticed her hesitating. "Don't worry, I don't bite." He joked. "You can come in, y'know. those vampires can't hurt you if you're inside."

Poppy smiled. She never knew how much she needed his encouraging words until now. She happily stepped inside and began looking around.

The place almost looked abandoned, like no one had lived here for years. The only evidence of Branch living her was the various piles of luggage strewn about the house. "Did you just arrive here today?" Poppy asked, looking around. "Where are your parents-"

Branch suddenly shushed her. He looked around the area, checking for danger. Poppy quietly gasped, ducking. "Vampires?" She asked.

Branch smirked a little. "Maybe..." He said. Poppy looked around before she realized that there wasn't anything there.

"There's no vampire, is there?" She asked. "You just said that so I'd stop talking!"

Branch snickered a little. "Maybe..." Poppy frowned, making the most adorable mad face you'd ever seen. That made branch howl out in laughter.

"That's not funny, Branch!" She cried. "I was really worried!" He crossed her arms. 'No wonder Branch joined drama.' She thought. 'His acting is really convincing..'

Branch's laughter died down. "I found the flashlight." He said, wiping away a tear from laughing too much. He tossed it to her and closed the door.

"So, why doesn't the house have electricity?" asked Poppy. "Never has." Replied Branch. "They never installed any. It's one of those old houses that people inhabited before we harnessed electricity. It's pretty old." He began to walk, Poppy following him close from behind. Branch unzipped his sweatshirt and threw it on a nearby couch.

Branch then lead her into hallway next to a bathroom. 'at least it has plumbing...' Poppy thought.

"Hey Poppy, can you shine that light at the hallway ceiling?" He asked. Poppy followed his instructions and noticed a drawstring hanging from the ceiling. "Do you have an attic?!" she asked excitedly. The idea of an attic excited her.

"Yep." He said, pulling on the string, revealing a staircase. Branch began climbing up the stairs, shuddering a little as the cool air washed over him. He began crawling a bit, and finally stood up, lending Poppy a hand as she climbed up.

"Whoa..." Said Poppy. His setup completely lit the whole place up. He had a window that brought the light from the stetting sun indoors, a small generator lighting up old Christmas lights and a bunch of unlit candles scattered across the place.

Branch grabbed a small box of matches from one of his makeshift shelves and began lighting the various colored candles.

He noticed the look on the young vampire's face. She was staring at him with complete awe. "Um.. Are you okay?" He asked, feeling his face heat up.

Poppy smiled. "This is amazing Branch! How long did it take you to set this all up?"

Branch scratched the back of his head. "Um.. maybe a week? I dunno..."

"That's so amazing!" Poppy reached over and attempted to hug him but he ducked to the side, causing her to miss. "Ow!" She cried, her body smacking the floor.

"Why'd you dodge my hug?" She asked.

"I don't like hugs." He stated as-a-matter-of-factly. Branch laid down across the floor on a mattress of wood flooring. He stared up at the ceiling waiting for her to protest.

"How can you not like hugs?!" She cried. "Hugs are like... The best thing ever!"

"Well, I hate them." He said, propping his head with his arms. "I don't really like physical contact."

Poppy frowned. This guy was a serious sad sack. Nothing that she couldn't fix!

Poppy took off her backpack and began digging around. She pulled a small guitar out of her bag, quickly tuned it and began playing.

"Hello darkness my old friend..."

Branch groaned loudly. "I HATE THAT SONG!" He cried. "They use it on the internet for just about everything!" The grumpy boy sat up and yanked the guitar out of the girl's hands.

"Hey!" Poppy cried. "Give it back!" Branch ignored her and began to walk to the other side of the room where he tossed her beloved guitar into a fire pit.

"Why'd you do that?" She cried. "What do you have against music?!"

"I hate music!" Said Branch. "I hate music, I hate singing, I hate dancing! I hate all of it!" He shouted." "Why can't you just be quiet for five minutes?" He whined.

"When i'm asked nicely, I've been known to do thing for people." She said, frowning.

Branch scoffed. "Well, I'm not the nice guy... If you can't handle it, then maybe you should just leave!" he said.

Poppy was taken aback. No one she knew had ever acted like this. "Fine! I will! I'm going back to my house..." Poppy started to pack up all of her things, getting ready to leave. If she was lucky, she could get home before it got super dark.

Poppy started climbing down the stairs, and walking out to the door. "FINE! GO!" Branch shouted after her. "I DON'T NEED YOU!" Branch felt his face get red. He snarled and kicked a chair. He paced around the room, growling and muttering nonsense, trying to calm himself.

Eventually, he flopped himself on the couch, exhausted. He took in a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. 'Man... Girls are annoying...' He thought. 'They're so confusing...'

Poppy started walking down the dark street, going the opposite direction of where they'd come. She'd go back to the school and ask her dad to pick her up.

She was about to send her text when she looked up from her phone. a figure was standing in the middle of the street. "Smidge...?" Poppy said, squinting a little. "Is that you...?"

No answer.

The figure took a step. something felt off. Poppy's pointed ear twitched. Whatever the hell that thing was, it definitely wasn't Smidge.

Another step. The thing was coming right towards her.

Poppy's eyes widened. 'I can't run forever... I gotta face this thing head on...' Poppy began sprinting toward the dark figure, her eyes flashing red.

"So I've been thinking..." Said Branch. "If vampires need to be invited in, then how did they get inside the school...? Someone must have let them in on purpose... I mean how else would they have snuck in?" Branch was talking to himself and was pacing around the room. Again...

Well actually, he was talking to a photograph. A lady in an apron was standing over a small, younger branch. They were both covered in icing. Branch peered at the photograph. He missed his grandmother so dearly...

He sighed. "You'd know what to do about this. You always did." He peered at his reflection in the image. He was a wreck...

Branch looked away from the photograph, he didn't want to look at himself anymore. He peered at a nearby calendar sitting next to it. The young werewolf peered at the dates of a lunar calendar. 'Tomorrow is the full moon.' he thought, reading it.

He frowned. Transforming on full moon nights was his least favorite part of being a werewolf. The worst part was that you couldn't control yourself. Immense pain, and then nothing. Lord help the poor soul that ran into him on full moon nights.

He'd always tried to transform away from people, and in the woods or something, but there always seemed to be that one stupid camper lurking around. And then a death the day after when they found the body... He wasn't to blame. Not really.

Of course, Branch could transform whenever he wanted, but he only did it when it was absolutely necessary, as the transformation was painful and took up a lot of his energy.

He sighed, putting the calendar back in place. He cursed himself for being so mad at Poppy. In a way, she reminded him of his old friend back in Troll town, his childhood city.

A time back when he was happy, without a care in the world. Almost...

Now he was on the run. Without any way to erase his past mistakes, he had to find ways to work around the police and get a high school education, so he could finally graduate and go to someplace where he could be left in peace.

He was feeling rather lonely after Poppy left, more so than usual. 'Maybe I shouldn't have yelled at her.' He thought, but he really did want her to leave him be. However, a part of him screamed "Don't go! Please stay and keep me from being lonely and afraid...", and he realized that he had screwed it up and was once again all alone.

His ear flicked. He heard a noise. Screeching and hissing from about a street away. He suddenly stood up. Branch ran to the window where he spied two figures fighting in the middle of the street.

One of them had pink hair, and they kind of looked like... "Poppy?" Asked Branch.

He peered out, watching the fight as it occurred. There was no way that was Poppy... Yet it couldn't be a coincidence, it looked exactly like her.

There she stood, red eyes and fangs, hissing at her opponent. 'No way...' thought Branch. "Is she a vampire...?'

She looked hurt, wounded. She hissed loudly as a last defense mechanism. She wasn't healing like a regular vampire would. Something was wrong. Poppy was one of the most powerful beings on earth and she was getting her ass kicked by a... Whatever the fuck that thing was.

The other figure was closing in on her, ready to strike for the kill.

Branch had to act fast if he was going to save her.

The boy had no time to waste. He began his transformation.

He coughed as he found it harder to breath, his lungs collapsing on themselves as his form expanded. Buttons popped, cloth ripped.

He cried out in agony as his bones shifted, and claws poked out from underneath his fingernails.

His spine expanded, growing a long fluffy tail and he felt the fur growing from underneath his skin.

Branch coughed out his old human teeth onto the floor as new ones poked out from his gums. Sharp, canine teeth filled in the spots. His skull expanded, forming a muzzle, and he snapped his jaws tight.

His ears became long, pointed and furry, and he felt his muscles stretching. It felt like his whole body was engulfed in flames.

Soon, the transformation was complete, and he stood on his hind legs, gently pushing the window open before jumping out and preforming another excellent duck and roll.

Branch dropped on all fours and began sprinting towards the dark figure.

Poppy was on her knees, using her hand to stop the bleeding along her arm. The figure stood over her, smirking. It used its floating, gut-like tentacles to wrap around her neck. Poppy gasped for air and tried to pull the arms off her neck, only to no avail.

Suddenly, Poppy felt herself fall to the ground, rolling a little before coming to a stop.

Something had thrown the creature off of her. She sat up, rubbing her head, watching and looking for her savior.

Her hero came in the form of a man-like creature standing on two legs, and snapping wildly at the tentacled creature. The wolf-man tackled it head on, using his teeth to bite his way through the organ tentacles.

The creature put up a fierce fight, slashing at the werewolf, bruising him and drawing blood on one of his shoulders. This only made his mad.

In the end, it wasn't enough to beat him. The wolf got a good opportunity to strike and the creature screeches in pain as its chest starts bleeding a black ooze. It backed away into a tree and fell to the ground, screeching until everything went quiet.

The werewolf snarled at the dead monster, seeing it merely as an annoyance. The werewolf then proceeded to slash at the body graphically with his claws, in order to ensure it didn't come back. He then chewed up parts of it and spit it out for good measure. The blood tasted nice and warm on his lips.

Poppy could only stare as the wolf-man clawed his prey and then wiped his paws on the grass. He then turned around to face her, walking slowly towards her. Of course, her first instinct is to back away, but instead he walks closer.

When it is clear to poppy that she won't be getting away, she stops moving, and waits for her death. She prays it will be a swift end. She whimpers and tears flood down her cheeks.

Branch gently moves his muzzle gently underneath her chin to let her know that it's alright and that he's not going to hurt her. He wants to help.

Poppy sits there with tears streaming down her cheeks, staring at his bright, icy blue eyes.

Branch helps her stand up and brings her to her feet. He gently brings her wrist up to his mouth and he licks the wound clean. Poppy winces a bit at the pain and sighs once it's over.

The wolf then brings his neck down to her level, gesturing for her to drink.

Poppy looks hesitant. "No, I can't drink your blood..." She said frowning.

Branch furrows his brow and snarls. 'If you don't drink it, you'll die. You can't heal unless you drink...' he thinks.

She doesn't understand him. "Ugh... I don't want to hurt you..." She says.

Branch groans. 'Guess we're doing this the hard way...'

'Little know fact, but werewolf blood is actually a delicacy to vampires, and vise versa. The rivalry has lasted for centuries, and so has the taste for one another's blood.' He thinks. 'I read it in a book once...'

Branch sighs softy and lifts his arm, holding up his paw, leaning his neck to the other side. "What are you-"

He forcefully rips his sharp claws across his neck. He whimpers a little and lets the blood drip down his neck. The smell is intoxicating. Poppy is suddenly drawn to the smell. She can't resist.

The vampire quickly moves towards his neck, getting closer and lapping up all the excess blood around his neck. It's sweet and it tastes amazing. It's as addicting as chocolate... She gasps with delight.

Branch moans a little. Even with all the fur being around his neck, he can feel her tongue's venom numming his skin. It feels fantastic and it's driving his senses wild.

"Wow..." she exclaims. That wasn't nearly enough blood. Branch notices her wound hasn't healed enough, so he pulls her closer to his chest, encouraging her to drink more. Poppy hasn't stuck her teeth in the vein yet, and she mutters, "I'm sorry..." Before sinking her teeth in.

"nngh..." Branch grunts a little as he feels his veins pulsing, bringing blood to the young vampire. He watches as her wound heals and her fangs come out with a small 'pop' noise.

Instinctively, she laps up the excess blood and licks the wound, sealing up the damage on his neck. Branch feels a little woozy afterwards and falls to his fore paws. He pauses for a moment, then begins his way back home so he can de-transform and go to sleep.

The vampire watches as the wolf walks away. She wonders if she should maybe go back to Branch's house. If he'd forgive her, that is... Poppy looked to see where the wolf had started heading and realized that it was gone.

She started walking back to Branch's house and knocked on the door. No answer. She knocked again.

A small series of shuffling noises inside the house. Then, an inhuman grunt. A minute later, Branch opened the door wearing a hoodie, dark circles his under his eyes. He was clearly tired. Or he had been crying. Or both. He looked really worn out...

Poppy walked inside and hugged him, and strangely enough, he didn't protest. "Are you oka-" He asked only to be cut off.

"Just shut up and let me hug you, okay?" she said, sniffling a little. Branch just stood there in the doorway, letting her hug him. He didn't protest or hug back, he just stood there and let Poppy hug him.

"Let's go to bed now, m'kay?" He said, surprising her. "It's late." She giggled a little. "Yeah.."

Branch led her upstairs to the attic again. "Oh, Wait here, alright? I'll go grab some sleeping bags." He said.

As he walked past to go downstairs again, he turned a corner too early and hit his shoulder, the injured on on the left. "OH SON OF A BITCH!" He shouted, stumbling down the stairs.

He groaned. "Oh my god... Branch are you okay?" She shouted, coming after him.

"I'm okay.." He said, wincing a little. His hoodie had a large red splotch growing on it, and the wound from earlier had started to bleed again. He used the walls as support to stand up and he made his way towards the couch where he left the sleeping bag.

Branch tiredly made his way back up the stairs and flopped the sleeping bag next to poppy.

He huffed a little. "Seriously, are you sure that you're okay...?" asked Poppy. "Yeah i'm good..." he said, pulling off his sweatshirt to observe the damage. "It's not bleeding too bad, is it...?" he commented.

"Branch, what the- Not bleeding too bad? What the hell did you do to your shoulder?" she demanded, putting her hands on her hips.

Then it all made sense to her. Why he looked tired, Why he didn't answer right away, his athletic ability as he carried her out the window, the wound on his shoulder was in the same place...

"You're a werewolf..." She confirmed.

Hee hee! a cliff hanger! okay but seriously this chapter was getting too long lol

Poor Smidge tho :(

I wonder what'll happen to the other members of the snack pack...

I hope you guys are likin' this so far. I'm really enjoying working on it, and i really do look at the comments and favorites because they mean something to me.

Anyways, partier out!


	4. Fears

"Walk while ye have light, lest darkness come upon you."

"You're a werewolf." She confirmed, jaw dropping. Her eyes widened. How hadn't she seen it before? Piecing together all of the clues, it made perfect sense. There was no other explanation for his strange behaviors.

Branch froze in his spot. How the fuck did she figure it out? He'd have to figure a way to cover it up. 'just play it cool...'

"Well, geez Poppy... I'm a guy, so, of course i'm hairy. No need to be rude..." He said, putting a new shirt on. "If I knew you'd react that way, I wouldn't have taken my shirt off!" He grit his teeth nervously, hoping she'd believe him.

She glared at him. "Stop pretending... I know you're a werewolf, Branch!" Poppy declared. She crossed her arms. She didn't believe his bluff for a second.

'Damn it... Was this girl always this stubborn...?' Branch stood up, towering above her. "Poppy, I never have been and never will be a werewolf. Werewolves don't exist." He stated, crossing his arms as well.

Poppy frowned at him, and stood up too, challenging him. "Then why do you have a calendar?" she asked, pointing at it. "The date is circled, and the words 'Full moon' are in BRIGHT RED!."

Branch's eyes widened in shock. 'Oh no... Urgh, gotta think of an excuse fast...'

"Pfft... I don't know what you're talking about." He scoffed, not meeting her gaze. "You're crazy."

'Smooth moves, genius...' his inner self scoffed.

"I most certainly AM NOT!" she shouted. "You are a werewolf, Branch. How else could you explain the fact that you're so athletically fit? Or the fact that you have a lunar calendar? Or the fact that you have a wound in the same place as the thing I saw earlier?" She pieced together the puzzle perfectly. Man, he really took her for granted.

She scrunched up her nose at him and frowned. "Why didn't you tell me..?" She asked, calming down a little.

"And what? Like you were going to tell me that you're a vampire...?" He retorted, raising an eyebrow. "Yeah, don't think I don't know about the whole, 'running off during school lunch' thing..." She gaped at him.

Of course. How else could he have known? It would've explained the hissing noises coming from the closet at school, and the fact that she left in such a hurry at lunch. It also explained her super strong grip.

Poppy didn't respond. She stared at him and huffed, turning herself around. "You can't know how I feel, Branch. Being a vampire is really hard..." Branch cut her off.

"You really don't think I understand how YOU feel? Poppy, even if you a vampire, it doesn't give you the excuse to complain and feel sorry for yourself all the time. We all face challenges, even the humans! What do you think they're going to do now that the school is overrun with monsters? Maybe we don't have to worry about protecting ourselves, but they certainly will."

"JUST SHUT UP!" She shouted, her pupils shrinking into thin slits. Her eyes flashed red, and for the first time, Branch feared for his life. He backed away, flinching as Poppy suddenly lashed out at him. Blood began to form around the cuts on his arm.

Branch grasped his arm, wincing at the pain. his arm was oozing with red drops racing along his arm.

Poppy gasped, covering her mouth with her hand, realizing what she just did. Her eyes dilated back to normal and she ran away into the corner of the room, curling into a ball and hiding her face. She was too ashamed to face him.

Poppy's eye began to well up with tears. Her first day was at school was a disaster. She was supposed to come here and have a nice school year, away from other monsters and where she could feel normal for once.

Instead, it was just the opposite. She most likely lost her new friends, a kid got murdered, the school was overrun by god knows what, and now some stupid were-jerk was loudly reminding her about everything in her life that was going wrong.

Branch stared down at the cuts, now a bit shaken, but he feels like a total dick. He made a girl cry, and that's never something to be proud about. He doesn't like sugar coating things, and he felt telling her bluntly would be the best option. Clearly though, he was wrong.

He sighed, watching as she sniffled and shook in her corner. Slowly, he walked over to the corner and sat down next to her, not saying a word. He just sat there next to her, silently deep in his thoughts.

An hour had passed, and the two teens had sat there, not saying a thing. Poppy had stopped crying, but she was obviously still upset. Neither had enough courage to speak.

The day was really crappy, so could it really get any worse? Branch took in a deep breath, catching Poppy's attention.

"I'm sorry for wrecking your guitar," Branch said, finally.

Poppy turned to look at him. He was staring at the floor, not meeting her gaze.

"I'm also sorry that I was a huge jerk to you, I thought I was helping by giving some blunt advice but, clearly I wasn't."

Poppy smiled a little. "Thanks. Also, I'm sorry for dumping all of my problems onto you. You didn't deserve that." She glanced at his wound. "Also for... your arm."

Branch looked at his arm as well, noticing that the wound had already begun healing. "Don't worry about it." He grumbled.

"Y'know," she said. "You're not as mean as you make yourself out to be, Branch. I think underneath all that grumpiness, lies a heart of gold." Poppy lifted her hand and gently placed it over his heart.

Branch looks at her like she's crazy, which causes her to giggle. "What? Did you think you could fool me with the whole 'Big bad wolf' routine forever?" She laughed. "I don't think so, buster." She boops his nose. Branch glares at her, making her laugh even more.

Poppy then gets an idea. "What's that on your shirt?" She asks. Branch looks down at his shirt confused, just as she takes her finger and flicks his nose. "HEY!" He cries, rubbing his nose. "What was that for?" he grumbled.

Poppy snorts. "I can't believe you actually fell for that!" She laughs, falling over and holding her stomach.

Branch quickly thinks of payback. He crouches down on his knees while she's distracted, and he quickly pounces, tackling her. The two roll in a ball until they eventually crash into the nearby wall. Branch snickers, then Poppy. Soon the two are giggling really hard over nothing.

"Hey, Poppy?"

"Hmm?"

"You know those weird late night conversations you have with people right before you fall asleep?"

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm having one of those moments."

"Ugh, me too... I want to sleep but I also don't."

"Yeah."

"mm."

"..."

"... Hey Branch?"

"Yeah?"

"Can we cuddle?"

"Why?"

"Cus I want to."

"No."

"Why not?"

"I don't want to."

"Too bad, I'm scooting over there."

"..."

"Branch?"

"Yes...?"

"Goodnight."

"... Night, Poppy."

The next morning, Branch wakes up first to find Poppy sleeping in his arms. Of course, he is initially panicking. He doesn't know what to do so he just stays completely still, silently praying that he hasn't woken her up.

He glances at a nearby alarm clock. 4:39 am. He groans.

He spends the morning quietly thinking of how he'll prepare for the full moon coming tonight. He winces. 'I really don't want to hurt anybody, but I really don't have a safe place I can change right now with all the vampires in the area, people will surely be setting traps. Except, maybe in the off limits area near the park...'

Branch groans, as he feels sore from last night. His senses are really sharp today, since he'll be shifting soon. He stares at poppy, who is asleep on his chest, softly breathing. She smiles in her sleep.

'at least one of us got good sleep...' he thinks to himself. 'Maybe i'm just over-worrying myself again.' He sighs and leans back into the floor, closing his eyes and waiting for the sun to rise.

AY BROS~ finished a new chapter! Hope its alright ^^;

I've been busy since school has started up and haven't had as much time to write but I hope that this suffices!

seeya in the next chapter


	5. Memories

Hey everyone! thanks to those who reviewed my story!

Just a quick update, I changed the warning from T to M just in case for any future adult/ nsfw stuff that may come along. Feel free to skip parts you don't feel comfortable reading TvT

 **ABBA1906** : Thank you! Glad you're enjoying it so far :D

 **Tomboyfriend:** I hope to write more love and gore ;)! Glad that it's better than Twilight haha!

Thanks for reading guys! ^ v ^

* * *

The next day begins slowly as any other. Poppy had just woken up early to get back to her house so she can get prepare for school.

She quickly said her goodbyes to Branch and headed back to her house. He watched her for a bit of the length before retreating into his home again. After all, he needed to prepare for a busy night.

Her dad greeted her at the door almost instantaneously and pulled her into a giggles and gives him a quick peck on the cheek before she walks into the living room and turns on the TV over to the news so she has something to watch while she eats breakfast.

"Breaking news!" cries a reporter.

"We have received information about a murder at the local Bergantown High school! Schools are directing that parents keep their children home while the authorities investigate the crime scene. Mysterious, possibly even supernatural sightings have been reported by a few of the faculty members at the high school."

Poppy gulps. That wasn't good... With rabid vampires on the loose, who knows what could happen?

"The body of the crime scene was last seen at 11:56 am by two teachers who have also mysteriously disappeared. The Student's body was identified as Samantha Brown, known by her nickname 'Smidge', given to her by friends and family. Here are their thoughts on the matter-"

Poppy gasps, as she recognizes the picture of the kid as the short burly girl from their theater class. She trembles. This was getting scary, even for a monster like her. She was feeling faint. "D-dad...?" She asked.

Her dad peeked in on her from the other room. "Yes, Poppy?"

"Do we have any blood bags in the freezer...?" She asked, dark circles peeking out from underneath her eyes. Last night was a mixture of confusing and devastating emotions. She turned off the television, not wanting any reminders of last night or the murder of her peer.

"Yes, In fact I started thawing some for when you got back. It's in the fridge." Poppy's dad was a vampire as well, so he understood her needs. However, it wasn't easy being a single father and though he tried his best to provide for her, it sometimes felt like it wasn't enough.

"Thank you, dad." She smiled, kissing his cheek again as she walked into the kitchen. The two of them never drank from live people. Only blood bags exclusively. They were considered weird that way by the few other monsters that knew them.

Poppy dug through the fridge, her thoughts jumping back and forth between her new friends and their safety, and the current location of the vampires.

Then to Branch. Would he be okay on his own tonight? She had spotted the dates on the lunar calendar, noting that the date circled today was a full moon.

She shook the thoughts away and continued digging inside the fridge.

She finally spotted the blood bag and she pulled it out. She sheathed her claws out from the small slits on her fingers and made two small punctures so that she could drink the blood.

She gulped the blood down super fast. The she-pire was still tired from the night before. The fight had sapped all her strength and she had to be bailed by Branch.

'What was the thing we fought anyway...? It wasn't like anything I've seen before...' she thought to herself. She slurped up the last of the blood and dumped the empty bag into a nearby trash bin, walking down the halls towards her bedroom.

"So I guess I don't have school today... What to do?" Poppy heaved herself onto her bedroom floor, the soft carpet soothing her.

Her room was pale pink, with stripes of magenta running down the walls. Posters and drawings hung from the walls. Her room was littered in wrappers, pieces of cut up paper, glitter, and other scrap-booking supplies. The carpet was white and a bit fluffy, though old. It smelt funny.

While she laid on the floor preparing to sleep for at least 12 hours, she turned her head, finding something that caught her attention.

"Oh, my, gah... Is that what I think it is?" She excitedly sat up and reached underneath the bed, pushing aside whatever crud she'd shoved underneath it.

After a few moments, she eventually pulled out a small journal, written in barely eligible writing entitled 'Poppy's first scrapbook, age 7'

The girl had tears in her eyes. "No way! I thought I'd lost this!" Poppy immediately flipped to first page, whipping open the book and settling in for a detailed session of nostalgia.

Many of the words inside the pages were spelled wrong, some of the letters were even backwards. Pictures of her old friends were scattered across the pages, one of them catching her attention. It even had a caption.

'Me and my very bestest friend, Branch Oak!'

She gaped. It couldn't be... Was it the same Branch? The one from her childhood? The one she did everything with before she'd moved away? The same one who went to Trolltown elementary? The one who went to her very same high school?

"He even looks just like him!" She couldn't help but stare at how happy the two of them looked in the photograph. This Branch had a missing tooth and was smiling as he held up a frog to the camera. Poppy was holding another frog in one hand, and a bow-tie in another. She probably wanted to put the bow-tie on the frog, but it obviously would've refused the makeover.

"I should show this to him..." She thought. He deserved to know her discovery. After all, what was the worst that could happen? That it wouldn't be him, and just a coincidence? Nah, Poppy had already made up her mind. She picked up the scrapbook, and began heading back to Branch's place.

He could already feel his senses tingling. Every whisper soon became a shout. He wasn't going to school today. He didn't care if he missed a day, he just couldn't be in a room with those other loud and obnoxious students. He didn't want to accidentally expose himself and hurt another student.

Branch's nose twitched. It was frightening how in a few mere hours, his sense could spike up so high. It made him so incredibly anxious.

The wolf-boy paced around the room before sitting down again. A single hour felt like ages to him. That's how long it had been since Poppy had left. He didn't dare tell her because he knew she'd want to stay and take care of him if she found out that this happens every day before the full moon.

He'd have to prepare to leave soon.

The neighborhood was eerily quiet. It seemed as if no one was around. No cars driving past, no nothing. Just Poppy. It was very odd to say the least, you would've taken one look and declared it a ghost town. "The news report must have scared people off more than I originally thought." She murmured to herself. But who wouldn't be scared of a killer on the loose?

'Well as long as they stay indoors, the humans won't have anything to worry about.' she thought. 'Vampires can only enter buildings if they're invited. Saying the word once lets them have access forever...'

The early afternoon sun shone brightly in the sky. Looking at it would hurt your eyes. The vampire held a hand over and glanced above her. She sighed. Would things ever get better?

'Wait a minute...' She thought to herself.

'On the first day of school, I was able to enter the building without being invited...' She cursed herself for being both careless and not noticing sooner. 'That can only mean that the building is somehow defying the regular vampire laws...'

Suddenly, something rammed itself at her. Her scrapbook went flying, the contents spilling out onto the ground. Like a speeding bullet, it tackled her to the ground, snapping and making inhumane noises at her. She tried to push it off of her, but the creature snarled and snapped closer.

Poppy snarled and her teeth lengthened as she dived towards the creatures throat. The creature cried out in pain and tried to get her off of it, but its feeble attempts were futile. It slowly lost its strength and stopped moving, the body lifeless between her teeth.

Poppy looked down at what attacked her and was horribly shocked.

It was a dog, not too horribly big but it had yellow fur, which was stained by black blood coming from its neck and it had weird red stripes around it. She looked at the tag. "Mr. Dinkles..." She read aloud.

The owner would probably come looking for their dog soon, so she'd have to split. Where could she hide...?

"That off limits place might work..." She recalled, running towards it with all her supernatural strength, leaving her scrapbook behind.

Just as she ran off, a slightly taller figure slowly lumbered towards the body of the dog and looked in the direction of where poppy had gone. The figure smirked and picked up the dog, holding it in its arms and slowly the dog was surrounded in a green aura, seemingly being healed.

"Hm... Go find your owner... Then see if the girl can survive..." The figure smiled even more and cackled as the dog quickly trotted off to find the owner.

"She won't stand a chance..."


	6. A Bad Situation

Creek walked into the office of the school counselor.

"You're late..." Growled a voice, tapping its fingers along the desk. The impatient figure carefully watched his every move, closing the door behind him, and turning to face her.

The zen kid sighed. "I had something to take care of." He answered, hoping it would excuse his lateness. The boy walked over to the desk and pulled out a chair to sit in.

"Something more important than waiting for my orders?" Snapped the voice, standing up to pace around him. "Last I checked, you belong to me. **You** follow **my** orders, Creek. You wait on me, not the other way around."

Creek flinched at the angry tone and shivered a little.

The figure loomed over him in threatening manner. "Is that clear?"

Creek gulped and only nodded in reply. "Y-yes, Madame Chef... C-crystal..."

"Good. Now onto business." Chef sat back down in her office chair, and reached inside of one of the desk drawers. She spread out a series of student files across the desk, ones that Creek easily recognized. Two pictures had giant X's printed over them, crossing out the photo.

She was blunt and got straight to the point. She had no time for games.

"Now, your next assignment is going to be turning Suki Burzuini. Her address is located inside of the files." Chef glanced at him. "And don't make such a mess like with your last target..." She added.

Creek frowned. "But how will I enter the buildings? It was different before, but I have to be invited inside in order to go inside..."

Chef grinned wickedly with her crooked, yellow teeth and pulled out a a small piece of paper from out of the inside of her jacket. "Ah, such an inquisitive mind, Creek! That's where this comes in..." Chef hands him a list.

"I need you to get these specific ingredients. They will allow me to create a special elixir that will allow vampires to enter and leave as they please..."

Creek quickly browsed over the list and his facial expression completely changed.

"...And getting these will ensure me to complete the rest of my missions safely?" He asked, raising a nervous eyebrow.

Chef nodded. "Not only will it make the mission of turning her easy, but the others will be easier to turn as well..."

Creek looks at the list again.

"First ingredient, a tuft of fur from a werewolf..." He read aloud. "The full moon is tonight, isn't it..?." He glanced at her.

"Precisely... You know what to do."

Creek glanced at the list and then back up at Chef. What other choice did he have?

"As you wish."

Poppy had been hiding in the off limits area for nearly the whole day, and no 'pet-murdering searchers' had gone after her.

In fact, it seemed like no one even knew that she was out here. She didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad thing.

Poppy glanced at the surroundings for what felt like the millionth time. The trees were incredibly tall, and you could barely see the gray, cloudy sky that hid behind them.

'Where did the sun go...?' She whined. Today just wasn't her day... It was changing way faster than the girl could comprehend.

Poppy started wondering if she should try going back home, but the honest truth was that she didn't know where she was. She was lost and she was terrified.

Despite her situation, the pink haired girl tried her best to stay positive, hoping she'd get out of the situation.

"No, I can't think like that. I'm definitely not lost. And it's definitely **not** becoming dark out..." She thought aloud.

She nervously looked up at the sky, which by the minute the sun was setting.

"Oh geez, how am I going to make my way back now..." She wondered. As if that wasn't enough for her to worry about, her scrapbook was who knows where, Branch could be off somewhere turning into a scary murderous monster, and the police might be out to get her.

Poppy whimpered. How was she ever going to get out of this?

Branch felt himself trembling. Night was falling fast and he needed to get to the off limits area soon. He'd packed a bag full of all the essentials, and slung it over his shoulder, walking towards the exit of the old house.

This wasn't any different than any of the other nights he'd encountered. The only thing he was worried about was harming any civilians that might be outside that night. He hoped that no one would be in the off limits area, because it was, well... Off limits.

Lucky for him, most residents were inside due to the recent new reports of the murder that'd happened at the high school.

'Geez.. I just wanted to get high school done and over with, graduate, and live the rest of my life in peace... Is that too much to ask?' he questioned himself.

Instead, life threw obstacles at him, left and right. Now not only did he have to deal with his curse, he also had to deal with a clan of vampires on the loose, and an annoying pink haired girl that was literally the definition of 'pain in the neck'.

"Ugh... did I really just make a vampire pun?" He groaned.

His thoughts were racing, and he felt his heart pulsing underneath his skin. It was getting way too hot to handle.

As soon as he began nearing the woods, he took the opportunity to take his hooded jacket off and stuff it in his backpack.

The boy ventured deeper into the woods, feeling fearful and nervous. Not for him, but for various other reasons.

"Grandma, I'm so glad you're not here to see me become this..." He muttered to himself.

He felt something wet fall onto his forehead. He glanced up at the sky and saw a few water drops falling between the thick branches of the trees.

'Great.. It's going to start pouring. Of course, why not. Add that onto my list of troubles.' The pessimist thought.

After finding what he declared a sucluded spot, he began undressing. He pulled off his simple white t-shirt, exposing his bandaged shoulder and his bruised back from the fight.

The cool rain honestly felt really nice running along his bare back. It was chilling and refreshing, and it sent shivers down the wolf-boy's spine.

Branch licked his teeth, and he felt them becoming pointy. The changes had already started.

He was already starting to feel a bit sore, so he realized he needed to hurry.

Branch pulled off his shoes, and then his socks, his feet touching the dirt on the ground below.

He undid his belt, yanked down his pants and tossed his underwear away, leaving his manhood exposed.

Branch always felt vulnerable leaving himself exposed like this, but he only had so many pairs of clothing, he couldn't afford to wreck the ones that he had.

Branch suddenly lurched over, the transformation taking its toll on him. He felt things shifting and changing within him, and it was suddenly harder to breathe.

He learned it was best to just give in and not resist the transformation because that only made the pain worse. He cried out in agony and felt the tears rushing down his cheeks.

This isn't new, but that doesn't make it any easier for him. All he can do is wait for it to stop.

His cries soon converted into a series of inhumane roars, a mix of man and monster, his voice changing into that of a true freak of nature.

He hunched over and felt his spine expanding, pushing out the bones that made up his tail.

Branch felt the fuzzy sensation of fur growing all over him, and the claws pushing out from his fingernails.

Bones shifting in impossibly painful ways, DNA reforming, skull expanding, ears becoming pointy.

The man-beast grunted when it was over. Whatever it was, it was no longer Branch. You could barely recognize that it was him.

The creature let out a lengthy howl to express the pain he'd just gone through, and then the creature dropped on all fours and began to search for the next hunt


	7. Full Moon

Poppy heard the screeching noises of the man-wolf and was suddenly alert, her pointed ears perking up at the cries of pain. "Oh no, Branch is out here..." She gulped. Her mouth felt dry and she overwhelmingly felt like crying. The She-pire wasn't all too good at defending herself, she'd proved this while fighting Smidge.

There was no way she could defend herself against a werewolf, even if she tried. Especially if it was the same werewolf that bailed her from getting killed..

Suddenly out of nowhere, Poppy felt herself tackled to the ground omce again for the second time that day. she really needed to pay more attention to her surroundings.

Then she realized... It was the same dog! "Mr. Dinkles!" She exclaimed, holding back the dog who was lurching at her with snapping jaws.

Poppy threw the dog off her, this time she was in control. She wasn't going to let fear consume her this time. Poppy enlarged her fangs to the longest capacity and hissed at the undead dog, her pupils turning a deep shade of red.

The dog growled, standing in place, just as a large, lumbering figure followed slowly behind it.

Poppy could only gasp and take a step back. " Biggie..." She whispered.

Poppy recognized him as a friend of Creek who had a pet dog. He'd talked about his dog all throughout the lunch period.

However, His eyes were missing, and in place of them, and oozing black liquid remained. It was so disgusting, Poppy could feel herself instinctively gagging.

"Is the dog his eyes or something?" Poppy wondered, taking yet another step back.

As biggie was just about to lunge toward her, something tackled him to the ground. It was the werewolf.

Poppy knew she had to run. Revelation of her vampire identity or not, her life was on the line.

As Biggie was distracted fighting the wolf, she took the opportunity to run with all her unnatural strength and leave the woods as fast as possible. She left with a shred of worry in the back of her head.

She took off like a bullet, leaving the three behind to fight their own battle. She did feel bad about leaving Branch there, but she was honestly way too scared to stay.

Biggie however, was strong and held the werewolf in a chokehold, earning a whine from Branch, who tried to pull him off. Branch bit on his arm, releasing Branch from his hold. The dog jumped a Branch at aimed at him neck, tearing away at chucks of skin.

Branch howled with pain. This prey was proving more difficult to kill then the last.

Creek came out from behind the trees, holding a silver dagger. "I'll finish the job so we can leave as soon as possible." he said. With a flick of his hand, biggie stepped aside.

Branch stood up and roared at Creek, who didn't even bat an eye at him. This made him even angrier. Branch swiped at the vampire, who quickly doged to the side, and left him exposed.

Creek took the weapon and jabbed him with the item. The werewolf plummeted to the ground, paralyzed and shrieking with pain. Creek yanked out the dagger and cut off a chunk of the fur.

"Item one is now collected. Come now, Biggie." Creek snapped his fingers and the two lifeless shells of puppets followed closely behind him.

The werewolf was breathing heavily, gasping for air and stuck on its side.

 _ **This is how I die...**_

 _ **This is how I die...**_

 _ **This is how I die...**_

Then suddenly, the werewolf swears it sees pink moving around the forest in a blurry fashion. The figure gets closer with tears in their eyes. "Oh my god." She exclaims

Poppy kneels down by the werewolf, not too close to be in distance of harm. After all, she was reckless, but not stupid.

"Oh my god, Branch..." She covers her mouth with her hands. She's engulfed with pure shock. "What in hell happened...?"

The werewolf is stubborn and won't accept help. Even if the pink means no harm, the werewolf will show her who's the boss. Branch begins to lift himself off the ground, growling as he's having a hard time. He turns to face the She-pire and he lets out a roar to show he means business. He collapses in on himself and falls to the ground.

Poppy is either really brave or incredibly stupid because she moves closer. The wolf snaps at her to get her to leave him alone, but she stares into his blue orbs, looking for a sign of her friend. Poppy's eyes well with tears.

It's a heart breaking scene. He tries to get up, he fails, and then he tries again. Soon the wolf doesn't move, he doesn't get up again. He doesn't have any more strength. He sits there, breathing heavily so that he can die slowly and accept his fate.

Poppy glances at the wounds. The damage looks similar to burn marks, still making slight hissing noises from the silver that had been injected moments ago. Poppy moves a bit closer until she is near the wound.

He can't stop her, so he just sits there and watches, praying she makes his end fast. Poppy however pushes her mouth towards the wound and plants a kiss on it, filling it with lots of her salavia. She starts to kiss the area all around his wounds until the healing spit starts to take effect.

He doesn't deny that it feels strange but he feels it beginning to work. He feels his side healing. The wolf tries to stand but Poppy coaxes him to lay down. The wolf is confused. Why was his prey helping him? Wasn't she afraid? He can't pinpoint it, but this one feels familiar.

Branch lays there, allowing the vampire to stroke his fur and lay against him. The Wolfman decides that he has made an ally tonight. With trust, he begins to fall asleep, breathing in and out gently.

His gentle and rhythmic breathing pattern lulls Poppy to sleep, and she starts to dream about a world where things aren't as cruddy as they are right now.

The rain beats against the two monsters and they feel like just for now, everything is okay for once.

The next morning, Poppy wakes up against a naked Branch. She stumbles backwards a bit before screeching, which wakes him up with a shout before he clutches his side and doubles over in pain.

"OH MY GOD!" She cries. "Branch are you alright?"

Branch stares at her, his voice is hoarse. "Yeah, I guess...? Ugh.. what happened last night...? And why are you out here...?" He stared at the gash on his side. It felt like he'd been stabbed with a flaming dagger. It burned.

"With the wound? I have no idea... As for me... It's a long story" Poppy frowned.

"However, you got into a fight with another one of those zombie looking things! They got to Biggie!"

Branch blinked. "What?"

"Yeah, this can't be a simple coincidence. Something strange is going on here and I intend to find out what."

Branch eyes at her strangely, but he can't deny that her enthusiasm is growing on him. He did truly have questions about what happened last night because he didn't remember a thing.

She looked down. "Um, maybe you want to find some clothes first?" she said, slowly covering her eyes.

Branch blushed. "Oh, god damn it... Well, it's not like I planned ahead on the fact that you were coming out here..." He retorted, scrunching his nose.

Poppy snickered and then sniffled a little. "I'm just glad you're okay." She said, wiping her eyes. Naked or not, she pulls the boy in for a hug, and he hesitantly hugs he back, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"I'm so tired..." He says, eyes closing. "I want to go back home..."

Poppy pats him gently on the back. "We'll go back to my house then. Besides, I have something I want to share with you..."


End file.
